March 28, 2013
Yes, it is official; we are closed for the season. We want to thank everyone who made this a great season at Blue Hills. While the year certainly did not start off the way anyone wanted, we all were certainly grateful for the way the season turned out and seemed to never end. Having the ski area open into the forth weekend of March, with the conditions we had, could be unprecedented in the history of the ski area. The conditions on Sunday, March 24th were outstanding. I cannot think of a better way of ending the season.
A big part of our success is due to the loyalty and confidence our customers had in us. You stuck by us when we opened late in December and had the January thaw. We didn’t hear complaints just questions regarding our plans to make snow and getting more trails open. We tried to answer your questions as best we could (we updated our website and Facebook page on a daily basis). Even with minimal conditions, you still came to Blue Hills with smiles backed by patience. Your patience paid off when the cold temperatures finally arrived and we started to make a lot of snow.
Snowmaking is a very expensive process with a large amount of our budget consumed by just the cost of water alone. We put in place a plan this year were we avoided busting our budget on marginal nights when temperatures just below freezing could only produce inches of snow. Instead we waited for temperatures in the teens and single digits and produced feet of snow. I think everyone can agree the results were worth it. We opened more trails this year than last year with the snow we made and the natural snow we received had a better base and was able to make the 54 inches of snow from two storms in February of 26 and 28 inches last a lot longer than in the past.
It seemed that if there were major issues a ski area could experience in a season, we did. But these were things that never affected the product we offered or our guest experience. Our employees worked long hours and through several night including Christmas Eve and Christmas to make sure Blue Hills was ready to open. Their dedication to the ski area showed in the product that we could create even when Mother Nature could not. It takes 350 employees to run Blue Hill and every one of them made a contribution to our success. Ski School, Lifts, Customer Service, Operations, Snowmaking Racing, Food Service, Parking and Ski Patrol are all part of what make s Blue Hills a special place.
Lastly, during the six years we have managed the ski area and made improvements many of which you cannot see but do experience each time you ski and ride here. We believe that we have been good stewards of the ski area recognizing our responsibility to manage the ski area responsibly as well as recognize its importance and place within the Blue Hills Reservation. We want to continue our stewardship and it is our intention to renew our contract to operate the Blue Hills Ski Area. If you would like to send us comments regarding our management of the ski area, we will forward them to the Department of Conservation and Recreation. You can email us at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .
We hope you have a wonderful summer and look forward to seeing you all again next season at Blue Hills.
Best regards,
Vero Piacentini
General Manager
Blue Hills Ski Area
